“Think!” she admonished herself to get back to the task at hand. Going into the past never brought her joy and wasn’t productive. She’d grown astute at avoiding it.
If she couldn’t call the pastor and she couldn’t call the sheriff, then she’d call Zoey. Zoey would ask a million questions when she got back–which was just fine with Clove. She needed a sounding board to throw all of her conflicting emotions about Drake at in one hot-chocolate fueled unofficial therapy session.
??“... I’m dreaming of a white Christmas…”??The water rushing through the pipes cut off and Clove was running out of time.
She dialed Zoey, who picked up on the first ring. They said hello and Clove asked her to do chores for a couple of days.”
“Where are you?”
Clove pinched the bridge of her nose. “I”m in Windy Plains? I think?” She vaguely remembered seeing a sign for dog sled rentals–a dead giveaway that they were in Windy Plains, where dog sledding was the pastime of choice. “Or just on the outskirts, anyway.”
“What are you doing there?” Zoey asked, as if she'd come here on purpose.
Clove chewed on her thumbnail as she thought. “We, uh, had a situation with Felix and then the trailer had a mishap and we’re spending the night. Hopefully, it’s just one night here while it gets fixed.”
Zoey gasped. “Is he okay?”
The stress Clove carried went down by two degrees because Felix was healthy and fine and Zoey’s question reminded her of that. Yes, she counted stress in degrees. The more stress the hotter she felt and the hotter she felt, the more she perspired. For the last two hours, she’d had a steady glow about her.
“Felix will be just fine,” she assured her friend. “But I’m worried about my chickens.” She drew in a breath. The reindeer thief had told her it could take a couple of days. “You know what? Just turn on the furnace. I’m not sure how long the repairs are going to take.”
“Okay. You still have those auto feeders for the hens?” Zoey heard all about Clove’s brilliant idea to build a feeder that could hold a week’s worth of pellets.
“Yep. And heated waterers. You just have to make sure they have some water in them.”
“Done. I’ll take care of everything until you get back. Good luck.”
“Thanks! I,” she gulped, hating the feeling that came with the next words, “owe you one.”
“Sure. I’ll be sure to collect on that when I take my Hawaiian vacation next month.” The sarcasm in her voice reassured Clove that she wouldn’t hold this over her head. Clove released another knot of tension. Only 996 knots to go.
Grandma sailed in, wearing pajamas covered in Rudolf faces. His red nose stood out against the green background. She smelled like her favorite lavender shampoo and body wash.
“Thanks, Zoe. I’ll call you when we’re on our way back.” She hung up just as Grandma scowled at her.
“What was that about?” Grandma tucked her shower stuff into her suitcase.
“Just getting someone to look after the cabin for us.” Clove stood and stretched her arms above her head. The room was comfortable with a queen bed in the middle, a large matching dresser and mirror on the wall with the door and a big window on the other side. The velvet shade was drawn tight to block out the streetlight that threatened to ruin any chance of sleep for Clove. She loved living in the cabin where the only light they had to worry about was a full moon.
“You should be looking after the cabin,” Grandma groused. She yanked back the covers and climbed into bed, displaying her unhappiness that Clove had showed up at all. She had no idea what Grandma planned to do once they made it to North Dakota. Was she going to leave Felix there? Take up residence? Ever let Clove know where they’d gone?
They’d be sharing the queen sized mattress tonight and not talking about these all-important things. The bed-and-breakfast only had two rooms, and it was either share with Grandma or share with Drake.
Drake wasn’t even an option.
“Have you talked to Drake?” Grandma asked before Clove could mount a sizable defense for chasing after her.
“Why would I talk to him?” she spat out as she shimmied out of her jeans and down to her thermals. Thankfully, they were as comfortable as pajamas, though not quite as stylish. At least she could sleep in them.
“You should be nice to him because you crashed his truck into a metal pole.” Grandma folded her arms. “ Or at least try to be nice to him–especially after something like that. Besides, he’s taking care of Felix while we’re inside, nice and warm.”
Clove sat on the edge of the mattress and pinned Grandma with a look. “Tell me the truth. Did he come to steal my reindeer?”
“Yes.” Grandma laid one hand on Clove’s arm. “They are in a desperate situation, Clove. I could see the fear for his family and for the animals they care for in his eyes.”
“Desperation doesn’t mean it’s okay to steal,” Clove insisted. She’d learned that lesson by the time she’d taken a bag of chips from the convenience store. That was hours before Dad dropped her off with Grandma for the last time–never to be seen or heard from again. She hadn’t eaten for two days and when she’d asked for food, he’d sealed his lips together and shook his head. To this day, she didn't know if he didn’t have money or just didn’t want to spend it on her. Either way, he wasn’t a good father, so what did it matter?
Something banged loud enough to cause alarms, and two knots in Clove’s neck. She ran to the window, threw open the sash, pulled up the glass and leaned outside to see Drake setting up a series of lightweight metal panels against the side of the house to make a pen.
